INTRODUCED TO THE AMERICAN COLONIES FROM
Africa by Thomas Jefferson, eggplant is often referred to as Guinea squash in Louisiana, where the vegetable has always been much more popular than in other areas of the South—due, most likely, to the large black population there. Except, in fact, for a splendid eggplant soup that chef Bill Neal used to prepare at Crook’s Corner in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, I don’t recall ever eating one outside New Orleans and the Louisiana Delta. In any case, this is another of the South’s great curried dishes, appropriate for a cold winter’s night or, chilled and skimmed of any surface fat, at a summer luncheon.

Makes 6 servings

INGREDIENTS

• 6 tablespoons bacon grease
• 2 cups diced eggplant
• 1 cup diced onions
• 1 cup diced celery
• 1 cup diced potatoes
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• 1⁄2 teaspoon curry powder
• Pinch of crumbled dried thyme
• Pinch of crumbled dried basil
• 2 1⁄2 cups chicken broth
• 1 cup heavy cream

INSTRUCTIONS

1. In a large, heavy skillet, heat the bacon grease over moderate heat.
2. Add the diced eggplant, onions, celery, potatoes, and minced garlic to the skillet.
3. Cook the mixture, stirring, for about 10 minutes.
4. Add the curry powder, dried thyme, and dried basil to the skillet.
5. Continue cooking until the potatoes start to stick to the bottom of the skillet.
6. Pour in the chicken broth and stir everything together.
7. Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce the heat to low and let it simmer for about 30 minutes.
8. The starch from the eggplant and potatoes will thicken the liquid as it simmers.
9. Once the soup has thickened, stir in the heavy cream.
10. Heat the soup well, but avoid boiling it.
11. Serve the creamy eggplant soup in soup bowls.